RJ01 - Reflective Journal Entry 1 - Due Saturday, Jan 30, 2010
Reflect some of the ways that you want to assess your students, i.e. monitor whether they are understanding what you're teaching.
Describe your (or your CT's) grading policy, i.e. how you will assign scores to represent performance. Explain why you are using this method. If you are continuing your CT's grading policy, explain what you feel are some of its strengths and weaknesses.
Use the template "EDC 484 RJ - Assessment and Grading".
We will use your goals to investigate grading on this Tuesday.
Reflection:
Some ways that I want to assess my students are through both formal and informal assessments. For example, some formal assessments I plan on using are tests, quizzes, projects, and lab reports. Some informal assessments I plan on using are opening prompt questions (where students have to write brief responses on a piece of paper), pre-tests before we start new material, and asking good guiding questions to get a handle on what and how the students are understanding the material.
I am continuing using my CT's grading policy because everyone in the department must use the same grading policy, that was pre-determined at the beginning of the year. The grading policy is passed out along with the syllabus at the beginning of the year.
Ms. Parvo's (Earth Science) Grading Policy is as follows:
Homework/Daily class participation: 35%
Graded Assignments (quizzes, tests, projects, etc.): 45%
The other 20% is the quarter's "anchor assignment", which is a project decided upon by all the Earth Science teachers and the department head that all the students must complete, with a common rubric and requirements.
Mrs. Bowers (Biology) Grading Policy is as follows:
Homework and class grade (participation and classroom behavior): 50%
Labs, current events/news, quizzes, tests and projects: 50%
Both teachers give ways that students can improve their grade. The students have 5 days to make corrections to their work, then they must make an appointment after school and bring the material they wish to improve. The students must make corrections to their work and explain why they made that error in thinking and write the correct answer. After the students turn in their original work and the corrections, the students will earn a portion of the points lost on the assignment.
I think that some of the strengths of my CTs grading policy is how the students can improve their grade. This policy is passed out at the beginning on the semester, along with the syllabus. Both teachers remind students of how they can improve their grades after they hand back each assignment, to remind students of this opportunity. I will probably use something like this when I have my own classroom. One of the weaknesses of my CTs grading policy, is that they don't say exactly how much tests and quizzes exactly count for. They both just lump the quizzes, tests, and other formal assessments into one category that accounts for a percentage of their grade.
RJ01 - Reflective Journal Entry 1 - Due Saturday, Jan 30, 2010
Reflection:
Some ways that I want to assess my students are through both formal and informal assessments. For example, some formal assessments I plan on using are tests, quizzes, projects, and lab reports. Some informal assessments I plan on using are opening prompt questions (where students have to write brief responses on a piece of paper), pre-tests before we start new material, and asking good guiding questions to get a handle on what and how the students are understanding the material.
I am continuing using my CT's grading policy because everyone in the department must use the same grading policy, that was pre-determined at the beginning of the year. The grading policy is passed out along with the syllabus at the beginning of the year.
Ms. Parvo's (Earth Science) Grading Policy is as follows:
Homework/Daily class participation: 35%
Graded Assignments (quizzes, tests, projects, etc.): 45%
The other 20% is the quarter's "anchor assignment", which is a project decided upon by all the Earth Science teachers and the department head that all the students must complete, with a common rubric and requirements.
Mrs. Bowers (Biology) Grading Policy is as follows:
Homework and class grade (participation and classroom behavior): 50%
Labs, current events/news, quizzes, tests and projects: 50%
Both teachers give ways that students can improve their grade. The students have 5 days to make corrections to their work, then they must make an appointment after school and bring the material they wish to improve. The students must make corrections to their work and explain why they made that error in thinking and write the correct answer. After the students turn in their original work and the corrections, the students will earn a portion of the points lost on the assignment.
I think that some of the strengths of my CTs grading policy is how the students can improve their grade. This policy is passed out at the beginning on the semester, along with the syllabus. Both teachers remind students of how they can improve their grades after they hand back each assignment, to remind students of this opportunity. I will probably use something like this when I have my own classroom. One of the weaknesses of my CTs grading policy, is that they don't say exactly how much tests and quizzes exactly count for. They both just lump the quizzes, tests, and other formal assessments into one category that accounts for a percentage of their grade.